Joshua 8:3-13 - You are to set an ambush

8:3-8

Joshua now sets out to carry out God’s instructions. God had not given him details on how to set the ambush. The Jericho battle plan was a purely God oriented plan, it was not one you would find any semblance of in any military training manual. The Ai plan was different. It was God initiated, but the details were normal military tactics. Sometimes God works in purely miraculous ways, at other times He works in “normal” ways. So we have here a standard military plan for the capture of Ai, with the enemy lured into a trap. The key point is that things are now being carried out according to the Lord’s commands.

8:9-13

The army was sent off, while Joshua spent the night with the people. 8:9 reads a little as if Joshua was not with the army, but 8:10 shows that he was actually with the army. So the troops are positioned and the plan is now put into action. That night Joshua is in the valley.